The Collegiate Church of Santa Maria della Scala in

Chieri Chieri (; ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont (Italy), located about southeast of Turin, by rail and by road. It borders the following municipalities: Baldissero Torinese, Pavarolo, Montaldo Torinese, Pino ...

() is a late- Gothic

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons, a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, headed by a dignitary bearing ...

, and the principal church or ''

duomo ''Duomo'' (, ) is an Italian term for a church with the features of, or having been built to serve as a cathedral, whether or not it currently plays this role. The Duomo of Monza, for example, has never been a diocesan seat and is by definitio ...

'', in the town of Chieri,

Province of Turin The province of Turin (; ; ) was a Provinces of Italy, province in the Piedmont region of Italy. Its capital was the city of Turin. The province existed until 31 December 2014, when it was replaced by the Metropolitan City of Turin. Geography It ...

, region of

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

, Italy.

History

An ancient church on the site was erected by Bishop Landolfo of Turin in the 11th century, putatively on the site of a temple to Minerva. The present church was rebuilt in the first decade of the 15th century, initially under the patronage of the Balbi and Bertoni families. The façade has buttresses and a tall stone portal sculpted with Romanesque motifs. The interior has three naves.

Interior

The Chapel of the Blessed Virgin of the Graces (''Beata Vergine della Grazie'') was designed (1757) by

Bernardo Vittone image:Grignasco-ChiesaParrocchiale.jpg, Parish Church of Grignasco Bernardo Antonio Vittone (19 August 1704 – 19 October 1770) was an Italian architect and writer. He was one of the three most important Baroque architects active in the Piedmont ...

in order to house a venerated statue of the titular image of the Virgin (1637) by Botto. The other chapels include the Turinetti, decorated with stucco, as well as the chapels of the Crucifix and the Corpus Domini (Eucharist), which hold 17th-century canvases. In the southern nave is a canvas depicting the ''Resurrection of Christ'' by Francesco Fea and a fresco depicting the ''Adoration by the Magi'' in the Chapel of the Tabussi. In the south transept is a Renaissance tabernacle attributed to

Matteo Sanmicheli Matteo is the Italian form of the given name Matthew. Another form is Mattia. The Hebrew meaning of Matteo is "gift of god". Matteo can also be used as a patronymic surname, often in the forms of de Matteo, De Matteo or DeMatteo, meaning " escend ...

that houses an altarpiece depicting ''Saints Anthony Abbot and Sebastian'', painted by

Guglielmo Caccia Guglielmo Caccia called il Moncalvo (9 May 15681625) was an Italian painter of sacred subjects in a Mannerist style. Biography He was born in Montabone near Acqui. He is said to have been a pupil of Lorenzo Sabbatini. He started painting in Mi ...

. The north transept has an altarpiece depicting the ''Trinity'' by Giovanni Crosio. Behind the main altar are carved 15th-century wooden choir stalls. At the base of the bell tower, in the ''Gallieri'' Chapel, are a series of 13th-century frescoes depicting the life of

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

, which were restored in the 20th century. The sacristy contains Renaissance furniture and a 17th-century altarpiece of the ''Resurrection''. The adjacent baptistry has the ''Tana Polyptych'' (1503) and 15th-century frescoes depicting the ''Passion of Christ'' by Guglielmo Fantini.Comune of Chieri
entry on the Cathedral.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maria Scala Chieri Roman Catholic churches in Chieri 11th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy Romanesque architecture in Piedmont Gothic architecture in Piedmont Baroque architecture in Piedmont